Please go and seek some help from your Doctor and get it assessed ...no point keeping it to yourself and not doing anything about it Bearcat...let us know how you went and remember you are not alone...i to also feel like ive lost some of my intelligence since my AVM around the same time frame 3-4 yrs...just to think of the word 'Intelligence' when i was typing this reply right now took about 15 seconds as i went blank...God bless!
I had 2 AVMs in my brain, last one subject to an angiogram confirmation was taken out on Tuesday 9th Dec. I feel very moody & aggressive a lot of the time & I do find talking to a counsellor has helped a lot. I do forget things all the time but think it’s a bit early yet to say if it’s permanent or not. I would say stay positive & true friends will understand & be patient mine have & write stuff down its a great help too. I’m 40 found out in 2013 it’s very hard without a doubt but this group is amazing & makes you realise you’re not on your own.
35years now post avm bleed and 10 and 12 years after radiosurgery. Yes memory is def a problem especially taking
anticonvulsants too. Short term memory probs. I can forget tv progs and films but hey i can get to watch them again. Ive forgotten that, is my fa vourite phrase and im not good with faces either. I had my memory tested and my verbal is better than my visual and this was helpful. They gave hints on work and how to cope although the pace of change in modern work places is very frustrating.I was able to get this through my GP if yr in the uk. Diarys, mobile phones calenders i live by them.
I had the rupture, and the craniotomy and all that stuff also, and it will be thirteen years
next month. At first my short term memory was almost totally shot. With time it slowly got better
and to speed it along I gave myself tests to memorize lists of things and then write down what
I would remember on paper. By the time I was 5 yrs. post surgery I was pretty close to being
as good as I once was. You will be also and because you are so young I expect you will do better
than I did. I was 53 when I had my rupture, and if I could come back than I know you can also!
I had a small stroke during an embolization for an AVM outside my brain. It left me with a numb L foot, ringing in the L ear and some cognition problems. The stroke was in the R frontal lobe. I used to have a good memory but struggle a bit now. I have trouble recalling words when I talk. I can see part of the answer in my mind but can't come up with the words. Any traumatic life event changes who we are. I am grateful I didn't have a catastrophic stroke. It could have been that. You're young and medical science makes gains all the time. Be patient with yourself.
Thank you everyone, I enjoy reading all your stories and I now understand that I am not alone! You all have made great recoveries and now all I can do is hope and pray for the same! Thank you again for your encouragement and support!
bud.....i had a size 6 avm to my thelamas. Dont feel as u do, please. In all account we are lucky to still be here. you are smarter then a lot of other people. Go look at people IQs. Life isn't based on smarts as you may think though. If you mean what you say your golden. How is your recovery? what I must say this, never stop. Its about your ability to never stop. Yes, theres always time for a break but never quit. keep me posted on your story and NEVER QUIT! I wish you the best bud.
I'm in complete agreement with Shelby. After my assessment I was enrolled in cognitive retraining classes. They taught me how to adapt to the changes in my thought processes, to develop new learning styles. You'd be surprised as to how the smallest adaptations can lead to big changes and AHA! moments.
Bearcat, one thing you may have to face is that you may never be reach 100%. Scary right, makes you angry? I haven't and I know I never will. The best ya can do is learn what your strengths are and use them to adjust your "weaknesses."
Hi Bearcat. Sounds as if you are going/have gone through a rough time. I feel really bad for you. But please be assured that you definitely aren't alone. My AVM is unruptured and untreated. Although it was diagnosed more than 20 years ago it is in a difficult place to remove without deficit. In day to day life it hasn't given me much problem so far. So for now I have decided the risks of serious deficit are just too great for me. However I completely understand what you say about memory problems. My memory used to be great and my long-term memory is still great. But as I have got older I have definitely noticed my short-term memory deteriorating. Much of the time I can't remember what people have said to me earlier in the same day. And that makes me doubt myself when I am talking to others and has damaged my self-confidence. I feel like I have premature dementure. And you are right that others find this very difficult to understand. Please hang in there. We're always here for you if you need to talk things over.
Bearcat,
my ruptures, I had 2 in a 5 week period was in 2009 and I still have memory problems and probably always will. It has gotten better over time and with a year of cognitive therapy. I can’t stress to you enough how important that therapy is. If you broke a bone you would have physical therapy, rite? Cognitive therapy is PT for your brain which was injured and needs help. Good luck
Oh, my thoughts are with you. I also was 14 when I had a major brain hemorrhage-my first. That is how my AVM announced itself. Four days before turning 15. My life has sure been different. I was unable to have surgery due to the deep location. 38 years later, and over 14 bleeds later, 3 1/2 years ago, the thing bled again and created a blood clot on my brainstem. I HAD to have a craniotomy and now, the stubborn AVM was able to be removed.
A happy dream for me is when I was 14, before my first massive burst. I was normal. I could do everything, without limitations. Since then, I've lived a different life, although always looking like nothing happened, made it difficult for others to understand my limits. I saw good improvement for two years after it happened. Since my brain surgery, well, 3 years is nothing when you are talking about the brain. I've had a different life, one I am grateful to have. I need to chat with you at length. This has been a life long battle for me. You'll find out who your friens are and those that stick by you. After awhile my dearest and truist, ( or those I thought were) took off and lived their "normal" life. You'll come to understand that you are not your "normal" self, but a better version with a different outlook on life, family, friends. All of this, just plain sucks, for lack of a better phrase, when you are 17. Dating and stating the truth was a nightmare. When guys found out I couldn't go skiing, or had phisical limits, they were a gonner! Good thing though. I was 32 when I got married. I didn't know or plan on having anymore brain issues, let alone brain surgery. It's been 3 years post op, and I don't know what I would do without the man I chose to marry and call my husband. My biggest fear was getting sick, and living the whole nightmare out. He is with me every step of the way. My memory is a mess-short term. I really didn't know who he was at first. I came home to a house I didn't know, and address and phone number, I didn't know etc. I don't have any tips on memory help. I'd say write things down, or talk into your phone, etc. execept I can't write and can't remember how to work the Ipod thing! Still, my friends can't see the problem, so don't really get that I can't remember if I ate or not, or who said what or where! I will tell you this. You are smarter than you know and even more so for forging on, in spite of this. It took me 13 years to graduate from college--now that's persistance! I started and stopped due to a brain hemorrhage, more time than I care to think about. I kept on keeping on, and thought if I'm going to die, at least I'll die with some knowledge! You can do this. Be well.. Susan
Hi Bearcat,
I agree...have many of the same problems...